Angela's Back Issues

Well, as many of you know, I've had some back problems for a few years. They reached a breaking point last week Thursday morning (the 25th). An MRI showed a significant disc herniation, which was pinching a nerve and causing the pain, numbness, and tingling in my leg. My chiropractor set me up with a surgical consult in the Cities on Tuesday, March 30th. After the surgeon saw my films, he recommended I get into surgery Wednesday morning (the 31st) to avoid any permanent nerve damage.

So, I checked into the hospital at 8:00 am on Wednesday morning and had back surgery at 10:00am. The surgery went very well and I was up and walking by Wednesday evening. I was released Thursday around noon and am now home again.

We have had a lot of friends and family step in to help as we were out of town and as I begin this recover process. We are so thankful for those who have changed their plans to be there to watch Jaelyn for us and for the wonderful cards, flowers, and well wishes.

It's now Saturday and I'm feeling pretty good. I have a 2 inch incision down my lower back and 9 sutures to take care of, but I can already tell the difference after surgery. The pain in my leg has been alleviated and though there is still a small amount of numbness in my right foot and leg, we are praying for full recovery of this as the swelling goes down.

I will be out of work for three to six weeks, depending on how my back heals. In the mean time, I can't drive for a week, I can't bend, twist, or lean. I also can't lift anything heavier than a gallon of milk (which is still a bit heavy for me at this time.) Thankfully, Jaelyn is a big girl who loves to climb, so we've rigged up a few things for her to be able to get in and out of her crib with assistance that won't torque my back and also up onto her changing table, since I can't sit on the floor. She's napping right now, but I'll get some pics of our big girl and post them soon. :)

Right now, my parents are out to help us. They've been a big help in cooking and cleaning and taking care of Jaelyn as I rest and get some strength back. Also, a big thank you goes out to Laura who took her day off to come stay with Jaelyn while we went to the surgical consult, and another to Grandma Annie who took time off work and stayed the night with Jaelyn and the next day while I was having my surgery. Also a big thanks to my coworkers who are ready and able to step in to help my long term sub get her groundings at school in this next week. We are so BLESSED to have such supportive family and friends around to step in when we need the help. :) THANK YOU!

I'll keep you updated as the days go on. In the mean time, I plan to finish the little bit of grad work I have to do, and get caught up on my scrapbooks, both paper and electronic. I'm excited to have a little time to work on those in the next week or two while I heal. :)